Life Isn't an Otome Game
by imafangirlforever
Summary: [Soulmate AU] In a world where you meet your soulmate at age sixteen, you have plenty of time to fall head over heels for someone else. Still trying to move past his crush on Haruhi, Hikaru meets his soulmate. Hikaru/OC. Slowburn. ("Oi, what kind of bitch makes a girl cry?" / "...oh, shit. You're my soulmate?") [Their first words to each other. It's love at first sight, surely.]
1. Chapter 1

**Welcome to this lighthearted, somewhat self-indulgent, mostly realistic interpretation of a soulmate au.**

 **Slowburn, little antics, and sass ahead.**

 **Crossposted on Ao3.**

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Hikaru meets his soulmate on April 6. He remembers this event vividly...mainly because the entire school stares at him for weeks after. Apparently, carrying an unconscious girl to the infirmary with an extremely panicked expression on his face while having the reputation of "suave and mischievous" isi pretty conspicuous.

His first impression of her is that she's a bitch, for the lack of a better term.

(His friends are horrified when he tells them this, but she simply rolls her eyes and dismisses the offense, saying that she had thought everyone in the host club were pretentious bastards, anyways, so they were even.)

He is walking towards Music Room 3 when a girl rushes past him, sobbing uncontrollably and wiping away tears. He blinks in surprise, then recognizes the girl as one of Honey's regular customer. She's an heiress to some tea company that never stops squealing about how adorable their golden haired friend is. Although Hikaru's somewhat reluctant to approach the sobbing girl, she's still a customer. Kyoya would _kill_ him if he knew that he walked past one of their upset customers without lending a hand.

"Are you alright, beautiful?" he asks cautiously, fully aware that this female is still inconsolably wailing. Females are fiery, whimsical creatures; he had learnt that much in the past. Hikaru braces himself for an onslaught of complaints, and she doesn't disappoint.

"That...that _horrible_ girl!" The pompous girl wails, latching onto his arm. Hand trembling, she points an accusatory finger. Trying not to visibly cringe at her sudden contact, Hikaru instead chooses to focus on the matter at hand. Eyes trailing upwards towards where the girl is pointing, his golden orbs meet deep chocolate brown. He discerns a flash of surprise in those eyes before that emotion is smothered.

She has ginger hair, and if Hikaru had been paying attention, he would've noticed that her hair was the exact same shade as his. But alas, he's too focused on the rather apathetic expression on her face as she gazes at the girl clinging onto his arm with mild disgust.

"Oi, what kind of bitch makes a girl cry?" Hikaru demands, slightly irritated by the tightening grip of the girl around his arm. Kyoya's going to _kill_ him for being late to the Host Club. Hikaru inwardly wishes that he had stayed with Kaoru and Haruhi to talk to the teacher after class; they're probably at the club wondering where he is.

She blinks for a moment, looking taken aback. She doesn't cringe at his language ( _thank God, because Kyoya would totally have a fit if he heard that Hikaru was cursing at a potential customer)_ but she _does_ look mildly surprised. Her chocolate brown eyes bore into his, searching for something. Then, her eyes trail upwards towards his hair and she lets out a small sound that sounds like a combination of a groan and a gasp. "Oh, shit...so you _are_ my soulmate."

Hikaru freezes in his tracks, because those are the exact words that he had poured over as a child. They are the words etched onto his left wrist, the words that his "soulmate" would first speak to him. His mother had explained the concept of soulmates to Hikaru and Kaoru softly when they reached age eight. _Hair color, age, and conversation_ , she would explain. _That's how you find your soulmate._

Hikaru faintly recalls his mother's horror when innocent little Kaoru asked what "shit" meant, and then pointed at Hikaru's soulmate tattoo for explanation when Yuzuha demanded where he heard the word.

 _Sixteen_. That was the magical number, the age that you would meet your supposed "soulmate". Apparently, if you were different ages, you'd meet twice by coincidence: once when you turned sixteen, and once when _they_ turned sixteen. Hikaru never put too much thought into the matter before. But now, staring at his soulmate eye to eye, Hikaru suddenly wishes he had paid more attention to the lecture about soulmates back in middle school.

They're now standing awkwardly in the hallway, unsure of what exactly to do. Meeting your soulmate is supposed to be a life changing moment, but all Hikaru wants to do is get this heiress off him and go to the Host Club. Meeting his soulmate on the way there wasn't exactly the plan. The girl clinging to his arm is blissfully silent, too shocked to make any more complaints.

" _You_ ," his soulmate says, breaking the silence. She's glaring at him. Hikaru's slightly amused: it was a rare, rare occasion to have a girl not swooning and sighing around him. "Do you know how much _trouble_ you gave me last year?"

Hikaru pauses. Then, he uses his rather profuse vocabulary. "...what?"

"I'm talking about your—our... _my_ hair!" His soulmate gestures towards her auburn locks. Hikaru scowls, ready to defend once again that _his hair color is natural, god damn it_ , but instead she throws him for a loop again. "You dyed it!"

Hikaru pauses again. This time, he recalls his pseudo-fight with Kaoru. They _had_ dyed their hair (blue and pink respectively), but Hikaru hadn't put much thought into it at the time. He and Kaoru always had their own little joke that _hey_ , maybe the two of them were soulmates. It always made the girls in the club swoon, even though both twins know it isn't true. They tried before: Kaoru had dyed his hair green, but Hikaru's hair had stayed mercifully ginger.

"Oh," he says lamely. "Sorry?"

"You'd _better_ be. It took me forever to convince my professors that it was my soulmate's doing, not mine. And even so, they _still_ sent me here," his soulmate mutters, mostly talking to herself now. Hikaru raises a questioning eyebrow, and the girl somehow manages to read it. Maybe it's a soulmate thing. Or maybe it's just her. "I transferred from Lobelia this year," she explains curtly, gesturing in the general direction of the girl's school. "My father was so angry."

Hikaru repeats himself again, feeling slightly bad about the situation. "Sorry…?"

"It's fine, it was bound to happen somehow," she waves off the matter, still scowling. Everything about her body language screams _it's not fine_ , but Hikaru takes her word for it. "He just didn't want me running off to find my soulmate. He figured that if I stayed in a girl's school, there'd be less of a chance for me to find you. Of course, I tried to tell him that my soulmate _could_ be a girl, but he didn't really listen."

His soulmate is turning out to be a lot more talkative than Hikaru originally pinned her to be, although maybe that's just because she's annoyed by the whole situation. Women, his father always advised him sagely, talked a _lot_ when they were angry.

The heiress that is still clinging onto his arm coughs, a strict reminder of the situation at hand. "Okay, I get it. But this young lady here," Hikaru does some kind of gesture towards the heiress with his free hand before continuing, "told me that you're the cause of her tears. Miss…"

"Mariko...Mariko Tachibana," the heiress supplies helpfully, glaring hatefully at his soulmate. There's something smug about the look that she sends towards the girl, and Hikaru purses his lips and reminds himself to count to ten before continuing.

"...Miss Tachibana is one of our most prized customers at the Host Club," Hikaru finishes smoothly. "As a Host, it's my duty to make sure _all_ young ladies are smiling. And if that means interfering with girl...friendship...problems…" The ginger tries not to cringe, but this is literally the thing that Tamaki's been drilling into them for the past few years. "...then so be it."

"Nice sentiment, but she's not really my friend," his soulmate returns coolly, her countenance taking a complete 180 turn from her earlier infuriated state. Now, instead of fire, she's as cold as ice. "Tell this bitch to stop bullying her classmates and I'll call the hair dye incident even."

Hikaru's amber eyes glance over at Tachibana, who is turning a rather violent shade of red. "Miss Tachibana?" he prompts.

She's trembling, her lips wobbling and eyes watering in a way that indicate an impending outburst. Hikaru waits for a few seconds, but after about five seconds of silence, he decides that's enough. He turns around to face his soulmate. "Bullying?" He questions.

"Tachibana finds it funny that she can threaten others from attending your...Host club...using her family's power," the ginger haired girl explains, brown eyes sharpening calculatively. She's observing Tachibana with a rather detached expression. "Although I have no inclinations towards attending your Host Club, I admit that a couple of my friends enjoy going there. Unfortunately, due the Tachibana family's outreach and the potential threat of dissolving agreements between their families, my friends have been unable to attend the club recently."

Hikaru absorbs the information for a moment. Then, trying not to glare at Tachibana, he asks lowly, "Did you?"

Tachibana trembles, and slowly detaches herself from Hikaru. This situation is so reminiscent of that other heiress, Ayanokoji Seika, that bullied Haruhi last year that Hikaru can't help the anger that leaks into his gaze for a second. "I'm going to bring this to the attention of the other hosts," Hikaru states, closing his eyes as he attempts to keep his temper in check. Kaoru would've been better at handling this. Or Kyoya, preferably. "And if these allegations are proven true, which shouldn't be hard with our resources, you will be banned from our club. And this incident will be brought up to your family and the administration."

He's not really sure about the last part. Considering Tachibana's still the heiress to an important company, the school board will probably let the incident slide by. _But_ he knows for sure that Tamaki won't allow the girl to visit the Host club again.

Tachibana lets out a wail now, crying and darting forward. She almost manages to slap his soulmate in the face, but Hikaru's faster. Gripping Tachibana's outstretched hand with his left hand, he casually adds, "And I guess we can add attempted physical assault to your list of grievances."

If Kyoya were here, he would probably be proud of how Hikaru was handling the situation.

Tachibana jerks her hand out of his grip, cradling it tenderly for a moment before scowling at Hikaru. With the most menacing glare she can muster, she whips back to face his soulmate. "Screw you, Amegawa," she hisses. "Mind your own business."

His soulmate looks remarkably unperturbed. "Sorry, I can't," Amegawa apologizes insincerely. "I'm sort of a busybody that pokes her nose into _everyone's_ business."

Hikaru resists the insane urge to snort at that comment. Tachibana lets out an infuriated huff and shoots Hikaru a venomous glare before stomping away.

The two of them stand in the corridor for a moment in complete silence. It's as if all the bravado from before suddenly evaporates. Hikaru isn't really equipped to dealing with these kind of situations. Flirting with girls at the Host Club is one thing, but this person is supposed to be his _soulmate_. People say that soulmates _complete_ you, and meeting your soulmate changes your entire world.

Hikaru still feels exactly the same way he had five minutes prior to this uncomfortable conversation, if not a little more confused. "So, uh…" he attempts, summoning all of his Host experience in order to come up with a decent conversation topic. "Sorry for calling you a bitch earlier."

He can feel himself cringing at his own words. _Nice of you to remind her_ , a voice says snarkily in his head. Another voice pipes up, sounding remarkably like Kaoru. _Well, she's lived with those words tattooed on her wrist for her entire life anyways._

"Apology accepted," she nods her head, unconsciously brushing a ginger lock behind her ear. "You...you're one of the Hosts here, right? Kind of like the White Lily League?"

Hikaru tries not to cringe at the invocation of the melodramatic club and the memories the name brings up. He really does, but somehow she manages to read his expression. A wry smirk spreads across her face, and Hikaru's subtly reminded of Kyoya. "Not a fan?" she guessed, crossing her arms over her chest and raising an eyebrow. Hikaru's deeply etched frown is enough of a response. She laughs, and although it isn't the same melodious tone as Haruhi's, there's something about her laugh that is _warm_. "I'm not either," she admits. "They're a little too extravagant for my taste."

"What's your name?" Hikaru blurts out, his impulsiveness too much to resist as he asks the question he's been meaning to ask for this entire conversation. Somehow, his usual Host suaveness has abandoned him completely.

She tilts her head slightly, studying him. Then, her lips curve into a small, genuine smile. "Miyako Amegawa. And you're either Hikaru or Kaoru Hitachiin."

He blinks, taken aback. Then, his mouth opens, but before he can ask, she cuts him off. "I was researching the other day about any gingers around school, considering my birthday was a few months ago. You and your brother have quite a reputation, and considering the notoriety of your hair-dying incident last year, it was just a matter of figuring out which one of you was my soulmate."

Yep, his soulmate is definitely a female Kyoya. Or, at least, she's just as OCD about knowing things as his glasses-wearing peer.

"Why didn't you come to the club if you knew?" Hikaru asks, confused.

She rolls her eyes. "I've heard all about your twincest act, Hitachiin. You two would probably welcome me with the exact same lines and the words etched in my skin don't sound much like something you'd say in a Host club. I figured something would happen eventually, if all of this soulmate talk is as reliable as people say. So, which one are you?"

Being the genius he is, Hikaru asks: "Huh?"

"Are you Hikaru or Kaoru?" She asks, staring at him with a pensive frown. "I'm afraid I can't really tell since I haven't interacted with either of you. And whenever I ask any girls about you two, they don't know how to tell you two apart, either."

Hikaru's tempted to introduce himself as Kaoru. He's _really,_ seriously tempted, but Amegawa's piercing gaze is scary enough that he hesitates. And that's enough.

"Hikaru, there you are!" Kaoru calls out to him, a relieved expression on his face as he approaches the two. "Everyone's been wondering where you went; you're super late. Why are you out... _oh_."

His twin studies the scene with a flabbergasted expression that would've made Hikaru laugh (had it been any other incident). "Oh," Kaoru says again, dumbfounded. He puts the pieces together much faster than Hikaru did, glancing at Amegawa's ginger hair and sensing the rather awkward atmosphere. "You must be Hikaru's soulmate?"

"I...um...yes," Amegawa answers haltingly. "I'm Amegawa Miyako."

The grin that sneaks on Kaoru's face spells nothing good. Hikaru reaches forward to stop his twin, but he's not fast enough to stop Kaoru's next comment. "Nice to meet you, future sister-in-law! I'm Kaoru."

Hikaru groans. He has _no idea_ where his brother's meddling nature popped up from, but he's sure that their mother is partially responsible for it. Yuzuha Hitachiin had always been invested in her son's love lives; but more than that, she told so many stories about how happy she was with their father and how their soulmate would make them feel whole. That's one of the things that Kaoru's been repeating for the past year: " _It's alright, Hikaru. I know you like Haruhi, but there might be someone else out there who you'll come to love more, someday."_

Hikaru _knows_ all of this. He's been told that he should feel happy for Haruhi, considering she met her soulmate one year earlier and Tamaki would make her happy. But knowing that he has a soulmate doesn't change the fact that it _hurts_ whenever he sees his blonde friend and Haruhi hold hands and laugh together.

Amegawa shifts awkwardly. "Nice to meet you, Hitachiin-san, but—"

"Nah, just call me Kaoru. It's pretty confusing considering there's two of us, right?" Kaoru laughs, snaking an arm around him. Hikaru glares at his brother, but Kaoru simply pets his head. He _pets his head!_ As if Hikaru's some kind of child! "And may we call you Miyako?"

Amegawa looks reluctant, but Kaoru's persistence wins. "Alright," she concedes, shoulders slumping slightly. "It's been a pleasure, but I really need to leave, now. I need to turn in my dissertation to our professor before he leaves."

"Hikaru can walk you there," Kaoru says loudly, nudging him none-too-subtly towards the girl. "Don't worry about it, bro. I'll handle Tamaki."

Although Hikaru knows his brother's doing this with good intentions, it takes all of Hikaru's self restraint to not blow up right there and then. Instead, he grits his teeth and says, "Yeah. I can take you there, Amegawa."

"Call her _Miyako_ ," Kaoru insists.

"Amegawa doesn't mind me using her last name, right?" Hikaru turns to the ginger haired girl, who looks remarkably relieved at his usage of her last name and hastily nods. "Cool. Now, shoo, Kaoru."

"Roger that!" Kaoru salutes, sending Hikaru a wink before scurrying off back to the club.

"Sorry about that," Hikaru says uncomfortably. He's beginning to feel like a parrot. Considering the amount of apologies he's uttered to Amegawa today, she probably thinks he's a wuss. "He's usually a lot more mature and calm, but when it comes to soulmate stuff…"

"Nah, I get it," Amegawa shakes her head, the action seemingly dissolving some of the tension in her body. "You don't really need to come along, you know."

"He's probably already at the club announcing our meeting to the world," Hikaru disagrees. He shoves his hands into his pockets awkwardly. "It's fine, really. Might as well come along. It's better than being trapped with my friends for an hour: they'll just spend the entire time teasing me."

Amegawa bites her lip before nodding her assent. "Okay, follow me."

She turns around swiftly and begins striding down the hall. Hikaru follows her, speeding up slightly so that he can walk alongside her. They trek down the hallway in silence for several minutes. The entire time, Hikaru's wondering what the standard procedure for meeting a soulmate is. His mother said that she and their father just _clicked_ , and he immediately asked her on a date. Hikaru's pretty sure that Amegawa would not appreciate a spontaneous confession of love. He's also pretty sure that he _doesn't_ love her, because when he thinks of love, he sees short brown hair and the friendly smile of his crossdressing friend.

"Hey, listen." Her voice breaks the silence once more. He glances to his left, and is surprised to see a small blush appear on his soulmate's face. She's not blushing from love, but embarrassment. Hikaru's not exactly sure how he can tell. "I'm sorry if I come off as a bit harsh. It's just that...well, despite everything that people tell me, I don't really know what to do about all of this soulmate stuff."

Her admittance makes something in Hikaru soften, and a grin tugs at his face. "Well, it's not like they have an exact handbook for the first meeting or anything," he quips.

"They do, actually," she counters, and Hikaru can't help the snicker that escaped his lips.

" _Seriously_? Did you read it?"

"It's bullshit, and I still can't believe I wasted half an hour of my time reading it," Amegawa rolls her eyes, looking a lot more relaxed than earlier. "For example, you are _not_ going to propose to me right now."

"Agreed," Hikaru says immediately, and she raises an eyebrow. Immediately, he flushes a bright red. "I mean, it's not like I don't like you? I mean, I just met you. It's just that...well, I don't like you. Love you. Yeah, that."

Screw being suave. Hikaru just wants to get a full, coherent sentence out without sounding like a bumbling idiot. "Plus," he rambles, "I kind of maybe like someone else? Although I guess I'm kinda screwed anyways since she's already head over heels for her soulmate. Plus they're both my friends and I should feel happy for them and should be in love with you right now. Why am I not in love with you? That would make things easier."

She stares at him, completely mystified by his word vomit. Hikaru wishes the earth would swallow him whole. Finally, she laughs again. "Stupid," she says, her eyes dancing with mirth. "You just met me. Of course you're not in love with me."

Hikaru blinks. "Oh, you're right."

"I'm _always_ right. Remember that, Hitachiin." She snorts, flipping her hair almost arrogantly, but he can tell from her tone that she's teasing. He takes this moment to study her, to figure out what kind of person Miyako Amegawa is. Her ginger hair is messily pulled into a ponytail, and although her eyes display calculative cunning, he sees there's some kind of presence about her that's welcoming. She's the kind of person that anyone would spill their troubles to, and Hikaru realizes that she's not like Kyoya. She's more like Kaoru, and something about that makes him like her more.

"Hikaru."

"Huh?" He relishes in the surprise that flashes through her eyes. It's pretty hard to elicit such a response from her; he can tell already.

"I mean, we're supposedly soulmates, right?" He shrugs uncomfortably. "Just call me Hikaru. And although we might not be head over heels for each other, you seem like a pretty chill person. We can be...friends?"

She pauses for a moment, then nods. "I'd...like that."

"Then, may I call you Miyako?"

"Sure. Hikaru," she adds his name rather tackily, but it's a start. They shake hands. Then, she nods to herself. "Well, the classroom is right downstairs."

Then, that's when the first mishap happens. Miyako stumbles, and Hikaru's eyes widen in horror as she trips and falls down the stairs. He's not fast enough to catch her, but he manages to stop her from falling down the second flight of stairs. He curses, frantically turning her around and studying her. "Amek...Miyako?"

She's unconscious, but he finds to his relief that she's still breathing.

 _Shit, shit, shit._

Hikaru scoops up the girl's prone body, mindful of her neck and head. Then, he rushes down the stairs and runs to the nurse's office as fast as he can.

(In short, it was a rather eventful first meeting.)

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 **Feel free to leave a review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Cross-posted to Ao3.**

 **Shoutout to** **MAD96, potterywheel, and the two guests for their lovely reviews 3 I appreciate it a lot!**

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"You okay?"

"For God's sake, Hitach...Hikaru...I'm not a doll," Miyako says irritably. Her soulmate's been asking the exact same question for the past twenty minutes, and although she found it slightly sweet at first, now it's just annoying. "I just fell down a few stairs."

"Do you know how hard it was to explain to my mom that _yes, I met my soulmate_ and _yes, she's currently in the hospital?"_

"Stop exaggerating." She rolls her eyes at his histrionics. She just had a slight concussion, but due to her father's insistence, stayed the night at the hospital. The nurses all are treating her especially nice: apparently, it's because Hikaru's friends with one of the Ootori sons. "Were you always this melodramatic as a kid? Or did you pick it up from your Host friends?"

Hikaru lets out a strangled sound that resembles a dying whale. Or a dying elephant. "My soulmate was sent to the _hospital_ after meeting me. I think I have the right to be worried."

His words are sincere, and that makes a small smile appear on her face. He hardly knows her and still is _this_ worried...in a way, it's kind of sweet. "You know, Hikaru," she observes, "I never thought much about you and your friends. I just dismissed you all as ostentatious, shallow people as I did with the Zuka club. But you're not that bad."

"Thank you?" It comes out as more of a question than a statement, and she can't help but snicker.

"You're a dork," she blurts out before she can stop herself. Then, horrified, she shuts up and stares mutely at her soulmate. Saying something like that is more of a thing you did with close friends, right? Miyako inwardly groans and berates herself for being so impulsive. She's usually better than this. She blames it on the fact that she met her soulmate.

Hikaru's staring at her. She realizes this rather quickly, and cringes under his scrutinizing gaze. Then, to her surprise (she finds that Hikaru defies her expectations regularly), he laughs. "Pfft, what's with that?"

She bristles, but all her anger dissolves when she realizes that he's smiling at her. "You're the dork here," he points out.

"I'm a _geek,"_ Miyako corrects. "You just don't know me well enough, yet."

"As long as you're not an otome game freak like Renge," Hikaru dismisses. She shifts awkwardly, and his amber eyes narrow. _"No."_

 _"Yes,"_ she insists, fully intent on defending her beloved bishies. "Do you not realize how stereotypical your Host club is? And after everyone found out that Fujioka-san is a girl, I realized that you guys are a reverse harem."

He's giving her that look that people usually give her when she gets passionate about otome games. "Reverse...harem?"

"Girl surrounded by a bunch of hot guys," Miyako points out. Now, it's _her_ turn to glare at him suspiciously. She scoots closer to him. "Haven't you played otome games? There's some geared towards male audiences too. Or BL games if you're into that."

Hikaru blushes. "I...um…"

"You _haven't?"_ She asks disbelievingly. "Do you even _play_ games?"

"Of course!" Hikaru snaps, offended at the very insinuation. "Kaoru and I spent the larger portion of our school time playing video games until we met Tamaki. We don't just play games; we _dominate_ them."

"Mmhm," she hums, not convinced. "And you haven't played otome games?"

"Who would play stupid games like those? They're just clicking some stupid choices. There's not even that much plot."

Miyako looks at him, aghast. Then, with nearly inhuman speed, she grabs her laptop from the side of her bed. "Hikaru," she announces solemnly, her smooth usage of his first name catching his attention. "As your soulmate and as your friend, it is my sworn duty to enlighten you with the dazzling beauty of truly amazing otome games. Sit your ass down and stay there. We can start with Dandelion."

.

.

.

.

"You seem to be doing better."

Hikaru rolls over to stare at his twin in slight confusion. Kaoru's propped on his side with his left hand, smiling at his twin with this satisfied and genuinely _happy_ expression on his face. He has to study Kaoru for a second before discerning his statement's meaning. "Are you talking about Amegawa?

"You can call her by her first name, you know," Kaoru snorts. He still hasn't met his soulmate, but still looks rather content with his life. "She's been coming over to the Host club for the past week after school to talk to you. I'm not saying you should get together with her or anything. Mom has that kind of nagging covered already. But...she makes you happier."

"She comes over to talk about otome games," Hikaru explains, staring at the ceiling contemplatively. "And I like talking with her. It's not like...like we're actually interested in each other or anything. She has a crush on Mori-senpai's brother. It's just nice having a friend."

"Mori's...oh, Satoshi?" Kaoru asks, his face lighting up in comprehension. "He's a nice guy. I've seen him around campus; he seems so excited to be here."

"Aren't all first years like that?" Hikaru snorts, but he quiets a little as he thinks about their older friend and his blonde companion. "I wonder if they're doing well in university. It's kind of lonely, now. Imagine how it'll be like once Kyoya and Tamaki-senpai graduate."

Honey-senpai and Mori-senpai, after a tearful graduation, had left to pursue higher education. Although doing so wasn't really necessary, considering their families' lines of work, Honey had wanted to try attending university for the cake. Mori-senpai had just tagged along. Without the two in the Host club, it was a lot quieter.

"They still pop in every once in awhile," Kaoru points out, leaning back lazily on the mattress. "And besides, we're training Yasuchika and Satoshi to be Hosts right now. I think Chika's tsundere personality is winning over a lot of the girls. Plus, Haruhi's still at the club giving advice to other girls."

"I just miss _us,"_ Hikaru says, and his twin understands.

"I do too," Kaoru admits. "But as time moves forward, we must move forward, too. The clock doesn't stop just for Cinderella."

Hikaru rolls his eyes, smirking slightly. "You and your Cinderella metaphors."

"I'm just glad that you're feeling cheerier," Kaoru says, his face softening. "After Tamaki-senpai and Haruhi hooked up…"

At that, Hikaru stiffens. "I'm sleepy," he lies. "Night."

"Hikaru…"

"Good _night_ , Kaoru."

Kaoru sighs, but doesn't mention them again. "Night, Hikaru."

.

.

.

.

"You're in my _class?_ "

"Oh my _God_." Simultaneously, Kaoru and Haruhi both facepalm as they watch Hikaru openly gape at his soulmate.

Miyako stares at him for a second in similar disbelief before her expression shifts to one of exasperation. With a lengthy sigh, she dismisses her incredulity with a mutter of, "I shouldn't even be surprised."

Hikaru sputters, uselessly flailing his arms at his gestures towards her. "You're in our class."

 _"Yes_ , genius," Miyako deadpans. Then, more thoughtfully: "Did you finish Nameless?"

"I'm still salty about the ending," Hikaru snaps, and she can see that he's remarkably upset about the game. Inwardly, Miyako nods to herself and pats herself on the back. She did a good job at corrupting him with otome games. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees that her soulmate's twin is snickering and raises a questioning eyebrow towards the twin.

"He was bawling his eyes out all Sunday," Kaoru confides through his giggles. "Over a _game_."

Miyako and Hikaru exchange looks and come to a mutual understanding: they're going to enlighten Kaoru next. But, before they can kidnap said ginger and exact their nefarious plan, the bell rings and they have to hurry to their seats as the teacher enters the classroom.

Miyako finds herself sitting next to Haruhi. She's talked to the girl a few times in the past, but their conversations had stayed mainly academic. Now, as she watches the brunette diligently take notes out of the corner of her eye, Miyako wonders if she should start a small conversation. As the teacher begins droning about adverb clauses, Miyako makes her decision.

Leaning over to her left, she whispers, "You're friends with both of the twins, right?"

It's more of a conversation starter than an actual question, but nevertheless, Haruhi obliges. "Yeah," she answers, smiling slightly as she adjusts the collar of her blue uniform. Miyako eyes her action with slight jealousy. Even after Haruhi was revealed to be a girl, she was still allowed to wear Ouran's male uniform since it "suited her" and she didn't have enough money to purchase another, anyways.

Miyako has a sneaking suspicion that Tamaki's connections might've helped this ruling, but she's still envious. The pale blue blazer and straight black trousers of Ouran Academy's male school uniform definitely appears more comfortable than the uniform Miyako's forced to wear.

Ouran Academy's female school uniform is absolutely _hideous_. It's a yellow fitted-bodice dress with a pointed white collar and red tie. The sleeves are absolutely _horrendous_ , and Miyako hates the petticoats she has to wear underneath her skirt to maintain its pristine bell shape.

"Do you have any tips of how to tell them apart? Sometimes it's hard to figure out who's who," Miyako admits, her cheeks burning with humiliation. True, she's only known the twins for a week or two. Even so, she's supposed to be Hikaru's soulmate. It's slightly embarrassing that she has to ask Haruhi about the matter. She quickly adds, "It's easy once I start talking to them, but whenever I approach them from afar, I can't tell at all. I'm always afraid I'll call out to the wrong twin."

"Notice how they hold themselves," Haruhi offers. "Hikaru likes to slouch a lot and usually stuffs his hands in his pockets. Kaoru's always lingering a little bit away and stands up straighter. But if you can tell them apart when talking to them, that's pretty amazing already."

"Not as amazing as you," Miyako disagrees. "And I still get it wrong when they talk simultaneously or intentionally say the same things. Their voices blend too well."

"Kaoru's voice is slightly more velvety?" Haruhi suggests, shrugging. "You'll get it over time."

Miyako can't help but admire and envy the girl's nonchalance. "I'll take your word for it," she agrees softly, turning back to pay attention to the teacher. Or, at least she _intended_ to face the teacher. Instead, out of the corner of her eye, Miyako notices that Hikaru's staring. He's not staring at her, though.

He's staring at Haruhi.

Miyako purses her lips and faces the board. She isn't in _love_ with Hikaru ( _definitely not: she still gets that fluttery feeling in her stomach when she talks to Satoshi Morinozuka_ ), but she does feel a bit of pity for the guy. Unrequited love _sucks_ , and Miyako can tell that Haruhi's genuinely happy with the King of their Host Club and won't be breaking up with the blonde anytime soon.

She picks up her pencil and begins copying down the words scrawled on the board, mindful of how Hikaru stares at Haruhi for the rest of the lecture. Poor guy.

* * *

 **Feel free to drop a review :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**askfasga more shameless self indulgence in fluff and a super basic writing style LOL**

 **Thank you to** **Keelan1210, Guest, Nights of Fire, and MAD96 for reviewing!**

 **p.s. The hair color issue will be explained next chapter or the chapter after, depending on how many events I decide to add in between, guest :)**

* * *

"Amegawa! Oi, Amegawa, wait up!" Hikaru calls. She doesn't stop walking, and he has to quicken his pace in order to catch up to her. Puffing his cheeks out in annoyance, the ginger haired teenager asks, "Why didn't you stop?"

"You asked to call me _Miyako,_ remember?" Miyako rolls her eyes.

It's funny how Hikaru refers to her as such in his head: whenever he sees her, he thinks _Miyako, Miyako, Miyako._ But it feels somewhat unnatural to call her that aloud, so he sticks to Amegawa. He likes her last name too, anyways.

"I like your last name," Hikaru explains the partial truth, shrugging casually. "Besides, you cringe whenever I call you Miyako."

It's true, and he sees her visibly shrink back at the sound of her name on his lips. "It _does_ feel a little weird since I just met you," she admits, "but it also feels weird when I call you 'Hikaru' and you just call me Amegawa."

"At least I don't add _chan_ to your name."

She shudders. "Satoshi-kun told me that Chika-san's brother gave everyone cutesy nicknames."

"Yeah, that's just what Honey-senpai does." Hikaru pauses and raises an eyebrow, echoing, "Satoshi- _kun?"_

She blushes, to his amusement. Hikaru's mischievous side chooses that moment to rear its head, and he leers over her with an amused smirk. "Aw, is our little Miya-chan blushing over her kouhai? You're such a cougar, huh? How scan~do~lous~"

He intentionally draws out every syllable, delighted by the reddening shade of her cheeks.

"Hikaru, shut up," she hisses, but he just laughs and continues sending her wiggling eyebrows and knowing smirks for the rest of their walk towards the Host club.

"Oh, _Satoshi-kun!"_ he cries, clutching his chest and batting his eyelashes. "Keep babbling about kendo with that charming grin on your face as I stand here and swoon!"

She lets out an embarrassed squeak, then punches him lightly on the shoulder. "Hikaru!"

So, yeah. They're not exactly in love with each other, but Hikaru finds himself laughing a lot in her presence. It's sort of nice to have a friend to tease in such a manner, even if she's supposedly his soulmate.

.

.

* * *

.

.

"You're not disturbed at all by them flirting with each other?"

Miyako looks up from her phone to meet amethyst eyes. She blinks in surprise, then realizes that _yes,_ Tamaki Suoh really is talking to her. Somehow, he must have guided himself and his posse of girls over to where she was sitting while she was absorbed by her otome game. He's referring to Hikaru and Kaoru, who are currently embracing dramatically while surrounded by a crowd of swooning girls. She registers his words, then shrugs. "Should I be?"

"He's your soulmate, right?" Tamaki presses. She's slightly surprised by his serious tone; from everything that Hikaru, Kaoru, and Haruhi had told her, she would've pinned Tamaki as a simple-minded idiot.

She turns his question against him. "Were you disturbed when girls flirted with Haruhi last year?"

He stiffens. Then, with a rather dramatic gesture of his hand, Tamaki declares, "That's different!"

He's cute...in some kind of innocent way that Miyako never would have guessed the host would be. Tamaki has some kind of childishly naive charm to him, and although she's never really liked the princely type that much, she can see why he's so popular. "Is that so?" She finally comments noncommittally.

"Thank you, Miss Miyako."

She freezes; surely she heard him wrong.

"I think Hikaru needs someone like you in his life. Somebody that can ground him, yet make him laugh and smile. He's not exactly the most genuine with his feelings, so we worry about him a lot. But knowing that you're with him...it reassures me." Tamaki's speech lacks the flowery words that he usually uses, but somehow, that makes it all the more impactful. Her lips curve upwards into a smile.

"Well, I can't guarantee that I'll be able to support him in the way you're thinking of, but I consider Hikaru my friend," she says.

It's funny: she's only known the ginger for less than a month, yet she already considers him one of her closest friends. Her other female friends, sans Haruhi of course, aren't exactly interested to engage in the brutal bantering that she and Hikaru enjoy.

She squares her shoulders and meets the host club's leader's gaze directly, vowing, "And I'll do my best to support him in any way I can."

Tamaki looks satisfied by that, and their audience (Tamaki's fans) sigh and swoon, murmuring something about how romantic she is. Miyako's sometimes surprised that they're not super overprotective of their Hosts, but these girls are genuinely friendly and kind people. The stereotypical overprotective fangirl image doesn't exactly apply to attendees of the Host Club. She and Tamaki barely have enough time to exchange smiles before they're interrupted.

"Hey, King—"

"—are you cheating on Haruhi—"

"—with _my_ soulmate?"

Miyako rolls her eyes as both Hikaru and Kaoru sling an arm over Tamaki's shoulders. The blonde sputters indignantly, _"Of course not!_ " but they continue sending him skeptical glances that infuriate Tamaki more. "You two are ridiculous," Tamaki declares. "I was just having a civil conversation with Miss Miyako, here."

"Civil, you say? What do you think about that, Kaoru?"

"I dunno, Hikaru. They seemed a little more... _i_ _ntimate_ to me."

Tamaki is wordlessly sputtering more nonsense. He turns to Miyako for help, but the ginger haired girl simply shrugs. Instead, he latches onto Haruhi (who had been walking by with a set of tea) and begins babbling.

"Haruhi, you don't believe in those dastardly twins, do you?" he wails. "You know I'd never, _ever_ betray you like that...right? _Right?!"_

Haruhi glances at the twins, then Miyako, then finally her teary soulmate.

"Sure, senpai," she deadpans, sending him a disbelieving stare.

 _"Haruhiiiiiiii!"_

Miyako can't help it. Laughter spills from her lips, honest and true, and if she had been paying attention, she would've noticed the hosts' moods brighten at her smile. It's the first time that she's laughed at their club, after all.

When her laughter subsides, she glances upwards and meets Hikaru's eyes. He has just the slightest bit of smugness shining in his features as he quirks an eyebrow at her, as if silently asking, _"Well?"_

"You guys aren't as bad as I thought you'd be," she concedes. They're an interesting host club, to say the least, and not just full of empty one-liners as she had thought.

Hikaru's smirk suddenly transforms into a slightly more genuine half-smile. Around him, girls swoon and Kaoru beams. His attention, however, is undoubtedly directed only towards her. With just the slightest lilt of playfulness, he quips, "Good to know."

.

.

* * *

.

.

Hikaru could've ended up with a much, much worse soulmate than Miyako. He reflects on this fact as his soulmate stumbles over a tile as she continues furiously typing on her phone. Almost instinctively, he grabs her and hauls her to her feet before she can fully fall to the ground, and she just gives him an acknowledging nod before returning back to her phone screen.

Walking to the Host club after class has become a routine for them. Hikaru doesn't really mind. Most of the time, they're accompanied by Kaoru and Haruhi, but this time, Kaoru's stayed behind to ask the teacher some literature questions and Haruhi's at home, sick and being nursed by their golden haired senpai.

At the thought of Tamaki nursing (or, more accurately, _attempting_ and _failing_ at nursing) Haruhi, Hikaru's lips turn downwards into a scowl. Unconsciously, he stuffs his hands into his pockets and continues trekking alongside his soulmate. She notices this action, and glances up from her phone. "You alright, Hikaru?"

"Fine," he grumbles, not keen on spilling all of his thoughts out to her.

They had basically already done that on their third day of knowing each other. She had awkwardly stumbled over her words and explained that she liked Satoshi Morinozuka, and Hikaru had felt compelled to assure her that it was _fine,_ especially since he liked the club's brown haired crossdresser, anyways.

That had resulted in a very long, strained, and awkward period of silence, but by the next day they were back to normal once again.

She studies him for a second. It's as if she can read his thoughts exactly, for her eyes glance out of the window before focusing her eyes firmly at her screen again. "If you say so," she allows.

She's too perceptive. It's almost as if she can see through him, and although sometimes it's relieving, other times Hikaru's just really unnerved.

"Are you texting someone?" he asks, peering over her shoulder. Even when she's immersed in an otome game, Miyako's usually not this silent on their walks to Music Room 3. Immediately, she shuts her phone.

 _Ah, so that's why._

"Satoshi-kun again?" he sneers, and Hikaru's surprised to hear some venom in his voice.

Miyako's surprised too, if he's reading her expression right. Her surprise quickly shifts to nonchalance. "Yeah," she answers, biting her lip. "I think...I think I should try confessing to him on Halloween."

"Halloween?" Hikaru questions, his eyebrows scrunching up in confusion. "Not that I have anything against Halloween, but is there any particular reason why you want to confess on such a holiday?"

"I figured that since the Host Club is going to be doing a test of courage again, I might as well see if I can gather the courage to confess too." Miyako shrugs again, feigning nonchalance. This time, Hikaru can tell that she's faking it: her hands are trembling slightly, and she's biting her lip and averting her gaze. "I might as well take advantage of the whole 'private Haunted House' experience you guys are offering. Do you think you can set me up with him?"

Hikaru's throat is dry, but he nods. "Yeah, sure. I guess I can ask Tamaki."

"Cool." She beams at him. "Thanks a lot, Hikaru."

"Will you...be okay, though?"

"You get me in there, and I'll do the rest," she says, nodding determinedly. "I know that...he'll probably reject me, especially since he already knows you and I are soulmates. But I might as well get it over with, right?"

Something about her defeatist comments infuriates him.

Hikaru stares at her with a frown and pressed lips. "Are you an idiot?"

"Huh?"

"Don't act so trivially with your feelings!" he snaps, crossing his arms over his chest. "You like him, right? At least _try_ to put your whole heart into it before you give up. If you like him, then like him! If you want to confess, then confess. But don't do it halfheartedly, otherwise what's the point? Don't give up until you've tried!"

 _(Is he talking to her anymore?)_

 _(Or to himself?)_

Hikaru doesn't realize that they've stopped walking until he notices Miyako trembling under his furious gaze. Immediately, his eyes widen and he inwardly groans.

Hikaru's done it again, shooting off his big mouth without taking others into consideration.

He takes a deep breath, closing his eyes and exhaling before opening them again. "Hey, um...about that..."

He expects her to cry. To run away. To give him some kind of pained smile that would make his heart squeeze in guilt, just like the heroines always did in shoujo manga (which Hikaru is _obviously_ not into).

Instead, she _laughs,_ clutching her sides in an effort to keep herself from toppling over _._

Hikaru, for a brief moment, wonders if she's gone mad.

"Sorry," Miyako says, her body still trembling from laughter. Her lips are twitching and her tone is clearly amused. Wiping a stray tear away, she snickers again and says, "I needed that. I really did. Thanks, Hikaru."

He stares at her, completely dumbfounded. Then, he feels heat rise to his cheeks. In an effort to hide his embarrassment, he shoves his hands into his pockets again. "Yeah, whatever. Just don't be stupid."

She laughs again.

 _Girls,_ Hikaru concludes. _Just when you think you understand them, they throw you for a loop again._

.

.

* * *

.

.

"You _geek."_

Miyako pauses, then stares at the ginger haired boy in front of her.

"Are you playing otome games _again?"_

There's a niggling suspicion that's nagging at her from the back of her brain, but Miyako's expression belies nothing. "Yeah. I'm almost done with this route," she answers, licking her lips and studying the boy in front of her.

He scowls at her and scolds, "At this rate, you're going to go blind from staring at screens all day."

 _Almost. Almost, but not quite._ Miyako studies the twin, but there's just something _off_ about him. Finally, she says with a wry smile, "Well, I still have perfect vision at the moment. Can you say such for yourself, Kaoru?"

Kaoru looks surprised for a second, then his surprise melts into amusement. "What gave me away?"

"No idea," Miyako replies truthfully, shrugging. "You didn't feel like Hikaru: he's a lot more abrasive and upfront about matters like these. If he's ever worried about me, he'd slip in an insult somewhere in his speech and express his concern in a sort of...roundabout way. And I guess, technically, your voice is different."

"True enough," Kaoru allows. His amber eyes are twinkling.

"But still," she says, raising an eyebrow. "Hypocritical, much? Hikaru's told me about all the games he used to play with _you_ throughout middle school and elementary school."

"We still have perfect vision at the moment, too," Kaoru throws her words back into her face, but he's smiling and she knows that he has no ill will. "I wanted to talk with you alone, but there's rarely a moment for the two of us to actually talk. Hikaru's always around me. Or you."

"Well, here's your chance. Shoot."

"Do you love Hikaru?"

She doesn't hesitate to respond. "No."

This, strangely enough, makes Kaoru grin wider. She's not sure if it's her candid personality or just the fact that she's not planning on hooking up with Hikaru anytime soon. Kaoru's always been a little different from the rest of society (who expect that, as soulmates, she and Hikaru should be dating or even engaged). "I consider him my friend, though."

"Good." Kaoru's voice is satisfied. "Because I don't like liars."

"Everyone's a liar in some way or another," Miyako points out, crossing her arms over her chest. It's not an accusation; it's more of an observation. Idly, she twirls a strand of her ginger hair, frowning at it. She's never particularly hated her hair color, but sometimes the bright shade is too noticeable for her liking. But she acknowledges that auburn suits both of the Hitachiin twins. "But nice to know that I have your stamp of approval if I ever want to date him."

Kaoru stares at her, then he smiles. "You're different from what I expected."

"I admit I'm a little more enthusiastic around the Host club. Everyone's bounciness seems to be infectious."

Then, she pauses and stares past Kaoru with a strange expression on her face. Kaoru follows her gaze and smiles bitterly at he sees Hikaru walking with Haruhi. "He shouldn't hurt himself so much."

She studies his expression, then whispers softly, "You shouldn't hurt yourself either, Kaoru."

The twin freezes. Then, he laughs. "You're more observant than I thought."

"You haven't met your soulmate, yet?"

"I'm more worried about Hikaru than me," Kaoru replies, waving at their pair of friends as they approach them. "I can handle myself."

"So you can," she allows. Sometimes, she reflects, Hikaru doesn't deserve this kind hearted twin. "But if you need somebody to talk to, I'm always free."

Kaoru sends her a sad, bittersweet smile. "Thanks."

* * *

 **And so the slowburn continues, but they're growing closer as time passes and Miyako's character is slowly being expanded upon lolol**

 **Feel free to leave a review! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you all for your lovely support 3**

* * *

"Amegawaaaa-senpai!"

Hikaru blinks at the loud voice, then turns to his soulmate. "Hey, your Prince Charming is calling for you," he comments snidely, and she rolls her eyes and jabs the ginger haired boy in the side with her elbow. This effectively shuts him up. "Ow, dammit woman, that hurts!" he hisses in pain.

"Satoshi-kun," she greets, her entire face lighting up. The boy skids to a stop before the two of them, gasping loudly for breath and grinning broadly. Miyako's always more girly around the younger Morinozuka, and Hikaru's amused to see that she's twirling her hair again. "Didn't I tell you that you can just call me Miyako?"

"But I'm your _kouhai_ ," Satoshi explains simply, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. It's sort of jarring to see the difference in personality between Satoshi Morinozuka and his older brother: while the former host is quiet and reserved, Satoshi shares none of his brother's silent personality. He has a bright, easygoing kind of charm to him that makes anybody grin in his presence, which is one of the main reasons why Tamaki's training him to be a Host. "It'd be rude."

"I already gave you my permission." Miyako giggles at Satoshi's pouty expression. "I mean," she adds, "if you want, you can call me 'Miyako-senpai' instead."

"Miyako-senpai."

Satoshi ponders the name thoughtfully as Hikaru watches his soulmate turn into a tomato. She looks like she's about to swoon, just like all the other girls that attend the Host club. _Love changes people,_ Hikaru concludes. He can't ever picture Miyako acting as skittish with him as she does with Satoshi now.

"Okay, Miyako-senpai it is!" Satoshi decides with a firm nod, and Hikaru has to steady his soulmate by placing a hand on her shoulder in order to keep her from floating off to cloud nine. He turns to Hikaru and addresses him cheerfully, "And how're you doing, Hitachiin-senpai? Where's your other half?"

"I'm doing fine." Hikaru removes his hand from Miyako's back and stuffs them uncomfortably in his pockets. He does that whenever he feels awkward. "Kaoru's talking with Kyoya-senpai."

Satoshi's eyes lighten up with understanding. "Oh, so you are Hikaru-senpai. Was I interrupting something? Sorry, I'm really oblivious to these kind of things! I'll go now."

"No," Hikaru blurts out, and the boy sends him a surprised look. "No," Hikaru repeats lamely. "You weren't interrupting anything. Say, I think I should probably head back to the club to wait for Kaoru since we're both going home together anyways. Why don't you escort Miyako to her car?"

Satoshi blinks, then shrugs. "Sure!" He beams, then hooks arms with a startled Miyako. "Ready to go then, Miyako-senpai?"

Miyako sends Hikaru a look along the lines of: _you are the best, most amazing wingman ever and oh gods I_ love _you._

Hikaru rolls his eyes and shoos her along with a tiny grin before trudging back to the Host club.

* * *

"How can you not ship them?" Miyako's staring at her soulmate with rounded, disbelieving eyes as she gestures to the shoujo manga in her hands. "She literally almost sacrificed her life for him, and he still loves her _even after_ her memories were taken and she tried to kill him. If that doesn't show devotion and love, then I don't know _what_ does."

"Why are you so invested in _fictional_ characters' relationships?" Hikaru counters.

Miyako fixates her soulmate with a deadpan stare. "Do we _really_ want a repeat experience of enlightenment in which I take you down the wonders of shoujo manga and BL?"

"Didn't you say I basically lived in one, anyways?" Hikaru snorts. "Besides, I have the BL part covered, thank you very much. I think Kaoru and I are the poster children for twincest, now."

"Speaking of which, if you're going to sell it...you guys are too sweet," Miyako asserts. Her ginger companion sends her an indignant look. (Oh yes, how _dare_ she judge his flirting skills. Heh.) "You need more angst. There has to be moments when you two try pushing away from each other because you _know_ that your love is wrong, and then you'll find yourselves falling deeper and deeper in love."

"We did push away each other."

"Once."

"...point taken," Hikaru concedes. "But do you really want a repeat of your hair dye fiasco?" Then, he pauses. His amber eyes adopt a mischievous glint to them, which she immediately catches. She straightens herself, glaring at him and pointing an accusing finger at his chest.

"Oh no you _don't_ , Hitachiin. Don't even think about it."

"So, Amegawa..." Hikaru drawls. "Would you prefer lime green or deep indigo?"

"Screw you."

* * *

"Hikaru...what even?" Kaoru stares, completely befuddled.

Hikaru catches his bewildered stare and hisses, "Not. A. Word."

Several rows in front of them, Miyako snickers and high-fives Haruhi. "Purple hair suits you, Hikaru!" She calls, smirking. Her hair is a similar shade of violet, but somehow she manages to pull it off better than her soulmate. Violet hair clashes too much with Hikaru's skin tone and eye color, and he honestly looks like he should be in Nekozawa's occult club rather than in the classroom.

* * *

"You're looking a little pale today, Mi~ya~ko~"

She glowers, glaring at his silver hair that is the exact same shade as her own. Tan skin did _not_ go well with silver, not to mention the poofy yellow girl's school uniform didn't match _anything_.

"This means _war._ "

* * *

"Haruhi, how come you and Tamaki don't have this hair color problem?" Miyako questions idly, tying her ginger hair into a ponytail with a spare hair band. Hikaru, petting his ginger locks and looking satisfied, looks over as well. They came to a truce after two weeks of shamelessly changing their hair color each day.

"Ah, I wondered about that at first, too," Haruhi admits. "But you know, there are studies which show that not all soulmates share hair colors. It's somewhat rare, but it _does_ happen. Just like some people soulmate tattoos show symbols rather than their first words, or sometimes they might not meet at exactly sixteen."

"Are those abnormalities genetic?" Hikaru can't help but ask. Biology and chemistry always interest him.

"There's evidence that proves such." Haruhi nods, her lips stretching out into a smile. "I guess Tamaki-senpai and I are lucky. Or unlucky, depending on how you look at it."

"You two are _definitely_ lucky," Miyako mutters, shooting a glare at her soulmate who snickers and whistles innocently, avoiding her gaze. Her entire demeanor changes as she asks, "Are you guys ready for your Halloween test of courage?"

"Kyoya-senpai has hired a bunch of people to make it better than last year," Kaoru comments, observing Hikaru's soulmate with a contemplative expression. "You seem excited."

"I...uh...um…" Miyako struggles to find an excuse, eyes darting around nervously.

Hikaru takes pity on his soulmate and speaks up. "Well, obviously they don't have cool Halloween festivals in Lobelia," Hikaru snorts. "Can you imagine? They'd probably sit around and do costume contests."

"That's actually true," Miyako muses, "But those contests were actually pretty fun."

"You're probably just saying that because you had a legitimate excuse to cosplay," Hikaru replies, rolling his eyes.

"I can't deny that." Miyako observes Haruhi, a glint in her eyes. "Hey, Haruhi...has anyone ever told you that your face is really nice?"

"Uh...thank you."

"Sooo," Miyako wheedles. "Would you like to try cosplaying with me? There's this character I want to do, and you kind of look like another character from the same series."

 _"No,_ " Hikaru says firmly.

"Hikaru." His name is said as a warning. Then, a wicked grin spreads over her face. "Haruhi. In. A. Maid. Outfit."

Hikaru pauses, considering the notion. His face turns a notable shade of red, and Kaoru doesn't seem to be faring much better. Haruhi groans and simply says, "Miyako."

Miyako snickers.

* * *

Yuzuha Hitachiin is a force of nature, and when she wants something, she won't be stopped by anything...even her sons. Hikaru had told her such, but Miyako doesn't really believe it until she's whisked away by a suspicious Rolls Royce and sitting across from a bright-eyed fashion designer.

"Your hair suits you so well," Yuzuha gushes, beaming. "My, you must become one of my models for my next collection! I already feel sparks of inspiration...perhaps I should finally make matching soulmate outfits. Oh, wouldn't that be romantic? I can get Hikaru to model with you!"

Miyako winces. "I don't know, Mrs. Hitachiin. I've never modeled before-"

"Hikaru can teach you! He used to model for me _all_ the time when he was little. He made such a cute little girl…"

Miyako perks up. "So, hypothetically," she starts, leaning forward. "If I agreed to this whole modelling gig, we'd spend a lot of time together."

By the look in her eyes, Miyako's sure that Yuzuha has caught on, but the woman plays along anyways. "My creations take time to perfect, after all."

"And I'm sure you'd have enough time to show me a few pictures of cute little Hikaru and Kaoru dressed up?"

A beautiful, deceptively gentle smile blooms on Yuzuha's lips. "Why, of course!"

"Then we have a deal, Mrs. Hitachiin."

The woman giggles, swatting at her with her designer fan. "Please, just call me Yuzuha."

* * *

"I can't _believe_ you," Hikaru says to her for the seventeenth time. Miyako, dressed in a sleek white sequin dress that looks half-decent on her (not that he'd ever admit it), shoots him a glare and grinds her high heel into his foot. He winces.

"You know, for all the practice you had with modelling when you were a kid, you _really_ don't have any grit, do you?" Though her words are biting, the playful glint in her eyes belies her true intention.

"Tell that to me when _you're_ the one wearing a goddamn suit in this weather," he shoots back, sending a pointed glare at her dress before returning to his previous occupation—glaring at the sky while his mother fusses over their outfits.

"Well, on the bright side, this is practice for when you two marry!" Yuzuha comments cheerfully, still messing with the ruffles on Miyako's dress. She completely misses (or chooses to ignore—Hikaru's never sure about anything when it comes to his mother) the uncomfortable glances that Miyako and Hikaru share before they hastily glance away.

The sun is blistering and Hikaru is both cranky and tired. Had it not been for Miyako, who punctures the humid and uncomfortable atmosphere with her sharp verbal jabs and occasional thoughtful musings, he would've gone mad. They're in the middle of a good-natured squabble about whether or not water can be considered "wet" when Miyako glances at the sun and turns to his mother.

"Yuzuha, not that Hikaru and I don't appreciate this, but can we please do this inside?" she tries. It's a valiant effort, but his mother is as stubborn as he is.

"Nonsense! My next fashion show will be outdoors, so I need to be in the environment in which this outfit's going to be worn."

Immediately, the two soulmates exchange suffering glances.

It's going to take awhile.

* * *

"Happy birthday, princess!"

"You know, if you're going to be this extravagant about things, then I'm going to feel really bad for not doing anything for you this year," Miyako says, torn between amusement and embarrassment when her soulmate plops a giant teddy bear into her hands in the middle of the hallway. People are whispering. Kaoru is smirking. Even Haruhi—dear, angelic Haruhi—gives her an encouraging smile.

"You only knew me for like, a month," Hikaru dismisses, throwing a handful of sparkles at her.

"Are you sure you're not using me as an excuse to carry out another one of your crazy antics?" she deadpans. "Just promise to leave our hair out of it."

"You think so little of me, beautiful."

Miyako quirks an eyebrow. "Treat me like one of your customers and I'm abandoning you to Yuzuha's latest crossdressing project, asshole."

Hikaru snickers. "I thought girls liked being treated like a princess?"

"You're mistaken, Hikaru," Miyako chides, his name rolling off her tongue easily. "I'm not a princess. I'm a queen."

"Oh, pardon me, your majesty. This peasant will repent for his actions."

She laughs, tousling her hair. "He'd better."


End file.
